Akhilesh Shere of Victoria has been identified as the pilot who had to make an emergency crash landing near Qualicum Beach Airport on Sunday evening.
Shere was airlifted to Victoria General Hospital with injuries described as serious but non-life threatening.
Barry Andruschak, a friend and fellow member of the Vancouver Island Pilots Association and owner of the crashed plane, said Monday that Shere underwent surgery and is recovering.
“He is expected to make a good recovery,” said Andruschak, who was heading to the site Monday afternoon with fellow member Colin Williamson.
The Cessna 172 that Shere was piloting crash-landed in a ditch on the east side of the airport boundary about 7:45 p.m. near a steep ravine and line of trees. People living in the area reported the plane flying low over homes and said there were were sputtering sounds coming from the aircraft.
Shere was the only person on board.
Oceanside RCMP said the Transportation Safety Board, the Town of Qualicum Beach, which owns the airport, and the Ministry of Environment were notified of the incident, and that the Transportation Safety Board has since taken over the investigation into the crash.
A fundraising page has been set up for Shere, who is said to be in his early 20s.
Organizers say Shere recently finished his training as a commercial pilot.
“Akhilesh is loved by many in the aviation community, and he is a vibrant young man with a second-to-none personality with a life full of dreams ahead of him,” organizer Kalim Mabrouki wrote on the page.
“The main goal of this fundraiser is to relieve some of the financial stress for Akhi and let him recover promptly and thoroughly.”
Andruschak praised the efforts of first responders for their quick rescue and pulling the pilot from the plane, including Sebastian Lemire of the Joint Rescue Co-ordination Centre in Victoria, who happened to be in the area at the time of the crash.
“He was absolutely crucial to the safe rescue of the pilot.”
